Topic: First steps, on a budget

[Si D]

Hi, first post so hello all!

Well, after much umming and arring I finally got my plot this week.
Yes, I know that it's probably the wrong time of year but if I didn't get it now I'd never have gotten around to it ::)

It's big and rectangular and green.  Covered in mostly course grass, about 1 to 2ft tall, with the odd bit of bindweed here and there.

So, the first thing is, I guess, to get rid of the weed/grass.  Problem is that I'm on a stupidly tight budget (penniless student, etc) so having looked at the price of RoundUp I think that another way is required (also would prefer to stay vaguelly organic).

Also looked at the price of tarps/plastic sheeting - still a bit high. Well, I did say penniless student - even a £10er is a big commitment.  Manual labour, on the other hand, is free :P.

First question is:  can I just dig, pull out what weeds/roots I can by hand, and then go straight on to planting? (oh yeah, as well as no money I've no paticence either  ::))  Or would you recomend that wait until I can scrounge some plastic/carpet/etc from skips and friends etc and cover it to make sure I get rid of weeds.

Second question - really showing what a numpty I am - concerns digging technique.  I'll had a little fettle in the middle and it appears very stoney - couldn't get the fork in more that a few inches without hitting a golfball sized stone or three.  How deep exactly should I be digging it?  And would there be any problems with hacking it up with a mattock (which I find much easier than spade/fork in stoney ground) and then just turning it over with a fork and pulling out roots and stones?  Also, do I really need to cut the weeds before digging - the book I got says I do but doesn't say why.  I'd have thought that if I don't cut the weeds then they ought to be easier to hoik out when I start digging?  (OK, the main reason that I don't want to cut them is that all I have is a pair of old blunt hand sheers :()

Anyhoo, that's all the questions (for now), thank you for taking the trouble to read this far, and even more thanks for any advice you might offer!

[manicscousers]

Hiya, sid, welcome to the mad house
I know all about students, I've got 3 kids, all went through uni...
tools can be got at car boots, cheap
cardboard can be used to cover ground you've cleared and not using at the mo..any mates to help ?
go skip diving for stuff to cover any ground you're not going to dig yet
as long as you're getting the weeds out, it doesn't matter what you use to dig with, if a mattock's your thing, go for it
dig a bit, plant a bit's a good way to go, cover paths so's you're not walking where you're going to plant
hope this helps, lots of helpful people on here, good luck  ;D

[SueSteve]

Hi Si,
Welcome, I too am new, we got our allotment on 11th April, so all I can tell you is what we have found to work. I too am a student! Well, supposed to be, but taking a break at the moment!
We started by stringing off the entire allotment, so we could see what we had, and then started by using a fork to scrap back some of the grass, this removed clumps of grass, it was hard work on your arms, but after we had done this and trampled on it a bit it made a real difference. We then started digging. It was very slow going, and it took dh 3hours and me 6 hours to do a section 1mx4m! We have got a bit quicker since! We removed all the weeds that we could see.
With the rest of the lottie, we used Glyphosate, it cost 1.99 for the spray in Wilkos, but I was worried using this as when the wind catches it, it can land on the neighbours veggies, so we invested in the concentrated one (about £6). We then marked out a section for the spuds and we watered glyph on the rest , mid week and weekends for 2 weeks, total of 4 waterings. We finished the potato bed and planted 50 spuds! Since then we have sectioned off a section at a time, approx 2m x 4m dug it and planted. We now have 2 sections left to do. We are quicker at digging now, and our arm muscles are bulging!!!
Oh and dont forget to mark you r paths, we have put ours about every 1.5-2m, 50cm wide and strung off with orange string from wilkos 39p. We did not dig the paths, so that has saved us a job!
Good luck,
Sue

[tim]

I truly admire all these brave new ventures.  Long may they - & their instigators - survive!

Glyphosphate? DO read the blurb carefully, or you can waste a lot of money.
Nice to hear of thought of others - spray drifts in 'no breeze at all'!!

[Jeannine]

Welcome from me too Si D . It sound to me like you should throw a lottie barbie and invited the Uni crowd, they would get it dug in no time !!!

Have fun with your gardening, I can gurantee you will on here XX Jeannine

[caroline7758]

Welcome, SiD! First thing I would say is wait until the rain that's due has fallen, as that should make digging easier! As others have said, do a bit at a time or you'll get disheartened. The mattock (I'm impressed by your knowledge of the jargon, I've only recently found out what one of those is!) is good for taking off the top layer of grass before digging. Have you got access to any compost? If so you could try the "lazy bed" method. (try a search on this site). For quick results, I'd sow some courgette seeds in pots now and plant out at the end of the month- they're dead easy!

[SMP1704]

Hi Si D

Welcome.  Big tick for all the advice given so far. 

When confronted by a field of grass that should be nice crumbly brown(ish) soil, in your first year I would recommend just digging beds and leaving the paths in between undug.  You can use the mattock or hoe to keep the paths under control.  That gives you a definable area and an achieveable target for planting. 

To give you an idea, a really weedy 8 x 4 bed takes me about two days to dig and forensically weed.  If you 'just' have couch grass that's an easier job as the roots are easier to spot, being white.

Concentrated Glyo goes a long way when used in a watering can and is very effective on grass.  I think a small Wilko brand bottle will set you back about £5 and probably do about quarter of the plot, but you still have to dig............

Good luck and happy growing

[markfield rover]

I have yet to try it but Freecycle .com( I think) may be handy ,that and Santa!

[caroline7758]

If you let us know where you are, you might get some local tips. And I'd certainly second the vote for freecycle- people might have some surplus veg plants at this time of year.

[Robert_Brenchley]

Cover everything you can; cardboard boxes are unsightly but effective. Dig it slowly, and take the bigger stones out as you go, along with the roots. You'll probably need a spade, or even a mattock, to chop through the roots. If you get some cardboard or black plastic down, you can plant through holes cut in it.

[emmy1978]

Hello.  8)  From one skinted lottie holder to another - digging is FREE!
You just need a fork really to start with. Our plot came in much the same shape as yours and we gave our selves little targets like - clear a patch 4'x4', cover with carpet/weed suppressant/black plastic sheeting/cardboard or plant up while you get on with next patch.
It's not easy but for all the faffing about with weedkiller etc you may as well crack on and get clearing. It is very satisfying and the weed re-growth compared to some of the rotavated/weedkilled plots seems to be much better.
Loads of things can be planted from now all the way up to July so no probs there.
I don't know about cutting the weeds, seems like a waste of time to me but then it depends how high they are i spose.
I don't know about whacking it with a mattock but it sounds like so much fun I don't know how you can resist!
 8)

[Amazin]

Re the cardboard - check out your local diy and electrical supplies for spare large boxes, e.g. fridges, washing machines, which you can open out flat and use to cover quite a large area.

[kitten]

Hey Si & welcome!  We're newbies too this year (took on our plot on Jan 1st) and I have to say it's harder work that we anticipated, but hugely fun and a bit addictive (much like this site... ;D )

The main piece of advice I'd give you is to take it slowly!  ;)  Like others have said, cover what you can and don't expect to get the whole plot cleared & usable this year.  Concentrate on digging a small patch and plant it up with something you like to eat.  At least you'll feel like you're making progress.

Also, take plenty of pictures as you go along, you'll be amazed how quickly the plot changes and it's really good to look back at how it used to be!

Finally, good luck & don't worry about asking lots of questions, there are quite a few of us newbies around, so you're probably asking what we're all thinking  ;)  ;D

[bennettsleg]

Re the cardboard - check out your local diy and electrical supplies for spare large boxes, e.g. fridges, washing machines, which you can open out flat and use to cover quite a large area.

And your local corner shop/deli etc.  Cardboard is a huge problem for them.

cover the lot in cardboard - weighed down really well.  lift a section at a time and weed. The will help weaken the weeds before you dig them out. Make sure you remove as many perrenial (permanent) weeds like bind weed/thistles as deely as possible - be careful not to break the roots off as they will grow back.  Recover dug bit with cardboard to keep it weed free.

Little and often or loads and infrequently. Plant up an area as soon as it is clear so that the next time you visit the site you can start to watch for/see signs of life and gloat over your seedlings as they grow. It'll certainly give you a greater incentive to keep going!

Any queries or problems, this is the place to come to!

[Si D]

Many thanks for the warm welcome and all the info.

I now have a much clearer idea of what to do!

The mattocking will commence (I knew that being an archaeologist would come in handy sooner or later  :D ).

[markfield rover]

Our daughter is to  study archaeology we got her to dig a few test pits before she cottoned on!

[antipodes]

Hi! I took on a plot in January, 5m by 20m and I still have a few patches where it is weedy but most of it is planted. I used NO weedkiller, just me arm power and I am a mere slip of a girl. So you can get it cleared quite quickly. It takes me about 2 hrs to really sort out a section about 3 or 4 m2, that's weeding, digging and planting seeds.
Dig over with a fork, after a bit of rain makes it easier., pull out all weeds and roots, make a nice compost pile with them (I have stored some of mine in black bags in the sun which rots them down really fast and  speeds things up no end). You must dig down at least a spade's depth!! and pull out rocks. If that seems too hard, you might need to mulch that section and wait for it to soften up. Cardboard or tarps does weaken the weeds and keeps the ground soft. I did not cut the weeds, they are easier to pull when they are bigger.
You can still plant lots of things now, a bit late for spuds, but hey they will probably grow anyway, beans, peas, tomatoes (but you might have to do plants, it's a bit late to sow :(  ) carrots, lettuce, cabbage, broccoli.
Where you can't dig, cover.
Have a look on my blog if you want to see what I did step by step, my lot is far from perfect but I have managed to dig and plant about 80% of it in a short space of time. I go down just a few hours a week, plus some intensive public holiday sessions!
You might also find that your neighbours on the lot can give you a bit of a hand with spare seeds or seedlings??
Good luck!

[emmy1978]

(I knew that being an archaeologist would come in handy sooner or later  :D ).

How fantastic. I often think I'd have loved to have been an archaeologist. Fascinating work.  :D

[Si D]

Well, it certainly beats being an IT monkey, which I was for a considerable number of years before!

Anyhoo, am trying three different options for the digging:
Section A: a good dowsing of RoundUp.
Section B: digging by hand and pulling out all the roots then covering with a tarp.
Section C: taking the turfs from Section B and placing them upside down here then tarp over. Hopefully, the weeds on both the surface and the bottom of the turfs will die (this is usually what happens when we are trying to preserve the grass onsite for returfing after the dig  :-[).

Of course, my luck being what it is, as soon as I'd finished the back braking digging of a section the mother-in-law chirps up with "Oh, we've a petrol powered rotivator in the shed that you could have borrowed", D'oh.

[Barnowl]

If you've got e.g. couch grass, mare's tail, bindweed etc. then best to use the rotovator after weeding anyway. A rotovator will chop them into little bits from each of which will grow a new weed - bit like the Hydra.